Tiger deaths sicken
Re: "Remains of dead tigers buried", (BP, Feb 24).
The news of 72 tigers dying in Chiang Mai is both nauseating and mystifying. Blaming contaminated chicken meat sounds more like an alibi than an explanation, and it sidesteps the larger question of whether proper care was given to the captive animals.
Now that the tigers are dead, one also wonders what comes next. Will there be adequate security to prevent criminals from exhuming the carcasses for their valuable organs and parts?
The deaths are hardly a fitting backdrop to the recent knighthood bestowed upon Harald Link, whose "Save the Tigers" campaign has earned international acclaim.
Thailand clearly needs a nationwide campaign promoting environmental awareness and responsibility for wildlife.
Glen Chatelier
Same old problems
Re: "Dead man walking", (Business, Feb 23).
The article notes that being labelled the "sick man of Asia" has forced Thailand to reassess the long-standing problems behind its chronic economic malaise. It is surprising that such reassessment has taken so long.
Businesses are urging the new government to implement major structural reforms. But how can that happen under a political system that has held the country back for two decades?
Electoral outcomes have been overturned, parties dissolved, and political figures jailed. Under such conditions, meaningful reform seems unlikely.
Karl Reichstetter
Trump tariff terror
Re: "Not the end: Small US firms wary but hopeful on tariff upheaval", (BP, Feb 21).
Even after the recent ruling, uncertainty remains too great for some firms to resume production for the US market, as Ben Knepler, co-founder of outdoor chair maker True Places, noted.
At the end of the day, the US largely consumes more than it produces, while the rest of the world continues to manufacture. Basic economics suggests that exporting countries will eventually adjust prices accordingly. It is noteworthy that this has not yet fully occurred.
Jason A Jellison
Musing aloud
Re: "Temple faces probe over land grab", (BP, Feb 23).
Thailand is indeed fortunate. Repeated coups have cited the eradication of corruption as justification, and one might assume that these interventions have cleansed public life, including revered institutions such as Thai Buddhism.
Where would the country be today had such entrenched corruption not been addressed time and again over the past half-century?
Alternatively, what might Thailand look like had transparency and accountability been allowed to develop under uninterrupted democratic governance?
Will the Royal Thai Army next pledge to end abuses of conscripts? Or might we see effective enforcement against drunk driving and other traffic offences, finally reducing the high road fatality rate?
Felix Qui
